Olympic champion Oliver Zeidler narrowly missed his next gold medal at the Rower World Cup in Shanghai. Germany’s athlete of the year 2024 had to be content with silver in the one final on Sunday.
The 29-year-old lost his title to Stefanos Ntouskos, Olympic champion of Tokyo after a long break. Zeidler was at the finish behind the Greek 0.42 seconds.
“This silver medal shines with a golden edge and is a good start to the Olympics for me. It is now a good motivation because I have not won. I will be back next year,” announced Zeidler.
His silver was the second medal for the German Rowing Association (DRV) in the title fights in China after bronze for the women’s double four. The podium, on the other hand, missed Alexandra Föster. The 23-year-old finished fifth in the final.
At the finish line, Föster was 14 seconds behind the Irish world champion Fiona Murtagh, who prevailed in front of the British Lauren Henry and Frida Sanggaard Nielsen (Denmark).
Zeidler had stepped down after his Olympic victory in Paris and had concentrated on his studies. The 29-year-old did without the European Championship and the World Cups this season. Zeidler won his lead and quarter-finals at the World Cup this week, in the final he led the 1000-meter mark before Ntouskos stopped. The races in Shanghai saw Zeidler “as a kind of kick-off for the next Olympic cycle” to Los Angeles 2028.